Drugmaker preparing to advance its experimental mRNA-1018 shot into late-stage trials based on preliminary data
19 January 2025 - 14:50
byMariam Sunny
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Bengaluru — The US government has awarded Moderna $590-million to advance the development of its bird flu vaccine, as the country doubles down on efforts to tackle increasing infections in humans.
This is in addition to $176-million awarded by the US department of health & human services (HHS) last year to complete the late-stage development and testing of a pre-pandemic mRNA-based vaccine against the H5N1 avian influenza.
The award will also support the expansion of clinical studies for up to five additional subtypes of pandemic influenza, Moderna said on Friday.
“Avian flu variants have proven to be particularly unpredictable and dangerous to humans in the past. Accelerating the development of new vaccines will allow us to stay ahead and ensure that Americans have the tools they need to stay safe,” HHS secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement.
The drugmaker said it is preparing to advance its experimental shot, mRNA-1018, into late-stage trials based on preliminary data from an early-to-mid stage study and plans to present the data at an upcoming medical meeting.
Shares of the company were up 5% at $35.8 in extended trading on Friday.
The award was made through the Rapid Response Partnership Vehicle (RRPV) Consortium with funding from the US biomedical advanced research & development authority.
Nearly 70 people in the US, most of them farmworkers, have contracted bird flu since April, as the virus has circulated among poultry flocks and dairy herds.
Most infections in humans have been mild, but one fatality was reported in Louisiana last week.
The risk to the public from bird flu is low, and there has been no further evidence of person to person spread, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Moderna awarded $590m to develop bird flu vaccine
Drugmaker preparing to advance its experimental mRNA-1018 shot into late-stage trials based on preliminary data
Bengaluru — The US government has awarded Moderna $590-million to advance the development of its bird flu vaccine, as the country doubles down on efforts to tackle increasing infections in humans.
This is in addition to $176-million awarded by the US department of health & human services (HHS) last year to complete the late-stage development and testing of a pre-pandemic mRNA-based vaccine against the H5N1 avian influenza.
The award will also support the expansion of clinical studies for up to five additional subtypes of pandemic influenza, Moderna said on Friday.
“Avian flu variants have proven to be particularly unpredictable and dangerous to humans in the past. Accelerating the development of new vaccines will allow us to stay ahead and ensure that Americans have the tools they need to stay safe,” HHS secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement.
The drugmaker said it is preparing to advance its experimental shot, mRNA-1018, into late-stage trials based on preliminary data from an early-to-mid stage study and plans to present the data at an upcoming medical meeting.
Shares of the company were up 5% at $35.8 in extended trading on Friday.
The award was made through the Rapid Response Partnership Vehicle (RRPV) Consortium with funding from the US biomedical advanced research & development authority.
Nearly 70 people in the US, most of them farmworkers, have contracted bird flu since April, as the virus has circulated among poultry flocks and dairy herds.
Most infections in humans have been mild, but one fatality was reported in Louisiana last week.
The risk to the public from bird flu is low, and there has been no further evidence of person to person spread, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Reuters
WHO says US’s first human death from bird flu no cause of alarm
Avian flu continues to drain Quantum Foods
Debt-free Astral Foods back in the black
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Most Read
Published by Arena Holdings and distributed with the Financial Mail on the last Thursday of every month except December and January.